Printed textile web material and method

ABSTRACT

A printed textile web material and apparatus and method for making same is disclosed wherein web material comprises a heat-transferred printed face and an unprinted face and a paper web is adhesively bonded to the unprinted face. In making the web material, the printing and bonding are done simultaneously. The printed textile web is particularly suited for application to walls.

This invention relates to a printed textile web material and to a methodand apparatus for producing the same.

For some years it has been known to print textile web material bybringing it into contact with a transfer paper under heat and pressurein a calender. The transfer paper bears suitable printing, so that theprint is transferred from the transfer paper to the textile web materialin the calender.

The problem underlying the present invention is that of furtherenlarging the possible applications of a printed textile web material ofthis kind.

For the purpose of solving this problem the printed textile web materialof the invention is characterized in that its lower face is joined by anadhesive to a backing web.

A new product is thereby created, which consists of the textile webmaterial printed by the aforesaid process and coated on its lower faceby the backing web preferentive a paper web. Additional applications arethereby made possible, since the new material can be coated with aconventional adhesive for wallpapers and applied to walls. Textile hungwalls can thus be obtained, which hitherto was not possible in such asimple manner. On the contrary the expedient has been adopted ofstretching printed textile webs on walls by means of battens or otheraids. Furthermore, such textile wall hangings can be replaced in asimple manner by tearing off the textile web, the paper web under itremaining on the wall. The wall can then be hung with a newmaterial--wallpaper or textile material.

The production of a printed textile material of this kind isparticularly simple if the adhesive bond between the paper web and thetextile material is effected by means of a heat-activatable adhesive.This will be further explained below.

For the purpose in question it is best for the paper web to be a basepaper for wall hanging.

The invention also comprehends a method for producing a printed textileweb material of the said kind comprising the steps of bringing intocontact with one face of a textile web of material a web of transferpaper and into contact with the other face a heat-activatable adhesivecoated face of a backing web, and by applying heat and pressure to thecontacting webs transferring a pattern to said one face of the textileweb of material and bonding the backing web to the said other face ofthe textile web material. This method thus extends in a particularlyfavorable manner the previously described known method of transferringprinting from a transfer paper to textile web material, by adhesivelybonding the backing web to the rear face of the textile materialsimulatneously with this transfer.

The invention further comprehends an apparatus for carrying out the saidmethod, which apparatus comprises a calender arranged to apply heat andpressure to material passed there-through, a transfer paper web magazinereel, a textile web of material magazine reel, a heat-activatable coatedbacking web magazine reel, and between the calender and the magazinereels a deflecting roller round which the webs pass from the reels tothe calender with the transfer paper web in contact with one face of thetextile web material and the heat-activatable adhesive coated face ofthe backing web in contact with the other face of the textile webmaterial.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with referenceto the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 shows diagrammatically a view of a machine for producing aprinted textile web material according to the invention; and

FIG. 2 shows to an enlarged scale, and diagrammatically, a sectionthrough the web material.

Referring to the drawing, a calender roll 1 is rotated in the directionof the arrow 2 by means of a drive not shown in the drawing. Over aperipheral angle of about 180° a pressure belt 3, which is moved in thedirection of the arrow 4, bears against the surface of the calenderroll. The pressure belt is guided over deflecting rollers 5. Thecalender roll 1 is heated to a temperature between about 210° and 300°C.

From a first magazine reel 6 a printed transfer paper 7, passing round adeflecting roller 8, is introduced into the gap between the surface ofthe calender roll 1 and the pressure belt 3. Textile web material 9 froma second magazine reel 10 is likewise passed round the deflecting roller8 into the calender gap, bearing against the transfer paper 7. Throughthe application of heat and pressure the printing is transferred in thecalender from the transfer paper 7 to the upper face of the textile webmaterial.

On the outlet side of the calender the used transfer paper 7 is passedby way of another deflecting roller 11 to a winding reel 12, onto whichit is wound and is then destroyed. The printing textile web material 9is wound onto another winding reel 13 after first being guided round thedeflecting roller 11.

The components of the calender described so far are known.

According to the invention a third magazine reel 14 is provided, onwhich is disposed a backing web, preferential a paper web 15 whose upperface directed towards the textile web material is coated with aheat-activatable adhesive 16 (see also FIG. 2). This paper web isintroduced into the calender together with the webs 7 and 9, and in thecalender the heat-activatable adhesive is activated by the applicationof heat and pressure, so that the paper web is bonded to the unprintedface of the textile web material.

The new product shown diagrammatically in section in FIG. 2 and whichconsists of the printed textile web material 9 on whose unprinted facethe paper web 15 is adhesively bonded by means of the heat-activatableadhesive 16, is therefore wound onto the winding reel 13.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of making a web material, comprising thecooperative steps of bringing into contact with one face of a textileweb of material a web of transfer paper and into contact with the otherface a heat-activatable adhesive coated face of a backing web, and byapplying heat and pressure to the contacting webs transferring a patternto said one face of the textile web of material and bonding the backingweb to the said other face of the textile web material.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the steps of transferring and bonding are donesimultaneously.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the backing web is apaper web.